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Lucy Quaggin

Xinmei Shen

Iran’s new supreme leader has vowed to keep blocking the Strait of Hormuz, attack US bases and avenge the blood of its martyrs in his first statement since succeeding his father. US President Donald Trump responded with an insult and threat soon after.
“The lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz must definitely be used,” Mojtaba Khamenei said about the strategic waterway, which carries about a fifth of global oil shipments.
Khamenei urged Iran’s Gulf neighbours to close US military bases in the region “as soon as possible, because they must have realised by now that the claim of establishing security and peace by America was nothing more than a lie”.
His remarks came as tensions between US and Iran remain high following almost two weeks of strikes and counterstrikes across the Middle East.
Also on Thursday, Iran’s central military command threatened to retaliate against the region’s oil and gas industry if its own infrastructure were attacked during the US-Israel military campaign.
“We will set the region’s oil and gas on fire with the slightest attack on Iran’s energy infrastructure and ports,” a spokesperson said.


Trump threatened major new retaliation. “Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today,” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Iran’s Navy is gone, their Air Force is no longer, missiles, drones and everything else are being decimated, and their leaders have been wiped from the face of the earth.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also held his first news conference since the US-Israeli strikes began February 28, issuing a veiled threat at Khamenei.
“I will not detail the actions we are taking. We are creating the optimal conditions for toppling the regime but I won’t deny that I can’t tell you with all certainty that the people of Iran will topple the regime - ⁠a regime is toppled from the inside,” Netanyahu said on Thursday.
Iran’s new leader was chosen in March by the Assembly of Experts, a group of senior clerics responsible for selecting the country’s supreme leader, after his father, Ali Khamenei, was killed in an air strike.
His remarks on Thursday were his first public statement since his father’s death in late February, and were read on Iranian state television by a news anchor.
“I assure everyone that we will not neglect avenging the blood of your martyrs,” Khamenei said, while also adding that the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz must continue.
Iran’s UN ambassador Amir-Saeid Iravani said Tehran was not going to close the waterway, but stressed the country retained the right to safeguard the “peace and security” of the strait.
Oil shipments through the strait have largely halted since US-Israel strikes on Iran began nearly two weeks ago, causing oil prices to soar.
The waterway between the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean is a vital trade route, carrying crude oil and liquefied natural gas.
Some ships can still pass through the strait if ‌they coordinate with the Iranian navy, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei ⁠said on Thursday.
“After the current ‌events, generally we ⁠cannot ⁠return to conditions before February ‌28 [start of the current Iran ‌war] ... as we ‌have understood ‌how important the ⁠safety of the Strait ⁠of Hormuz is, and so did ‌the others,” Baghaei said in comments to a local news agency.

Bessent claims oil tankers will be escorted through strait
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview with British outlet Sky News on Thursday that the US Navy, “or perhaps an international coalition”, will be escorting oil tankers through the strait “as soon as it is militarily possible”.
“There are, in fact, tankers coming through now,” Bessent said. “Iranian tankers, I believe some Chinese-flag tankers have come through, so we know that they have not mined the straits.”
Bessent’s comments came after US Energy Secretary Chris Wright said earlier in the day that the US is currently not ready to escort oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.
“It’ll happen relatively soon, but it can’t happen now. We’re simply not ready,” Wright said in an interview with CNBC.
“All of our military assets right now are focused on destroying Iran’s offensive capabilities and the manufacturing industry that supplies their offensive capabilities.”
The US is “quite likely” to begin escorting ships through the vital passage by the end of March, Wright said. “That is what the military is working on,” he continued.
Wright said on Tuesday in a social media post that the US Navy had escorted a tanker through the strait, but promptly deleted the post. In a statement, the Department of Energy blamed an unspecified staffer for the mistake, according to Politico.




Oil prices soared to over US$100 on Thursday after the supreme leader’s statement, having fallen earlier in the week following comments from US President Donald Trump that the war would be over soon.
On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Iran’s military command warned the world to prepare for oil prices hitting US$200 a barrel.
Two tankers in an Iraqi port were on fire earlier on Thursday after an attack by suspected Iranian explosive-laden boats. The attacks have reportedly killed at least one crew member.
Trump plays down concerns over oil prices
Trump on Thursday tried to put a positive spin on fresh spikes in oil prices as the conflict continued to escalate.
“The United States is the largest oil producer in the world, by far, so when oil prices go up, we make a lot of money,” Trump said on social media.
But “stopping an evil empire” from destroying the world with nuclear weapons is of “far greater interest and importance to me”, he added.
The US president later boasted again about Operation Epic Fury’s progress at a Women’s History Month event at the White House.
“The situation with Iran is moving along very rapidly. It’s doing very well. Our military is unsurpassed,” he said. “There’s never been anything like it. Nobody’s ever seen anything like it. And we’re doing what has to be done.”
Around 2,500 people have been killed across the Middle East since the war began, official tolls and those from non-government agencies show.


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In first declaration since his appointment as the country’s new supreme leader, Khamenei demands that US military bases in region must close


In first declaration since his appointment as the country’s new supreme leader, Khamenei demands that US military bases in region must close.


Iran’s new supreme leader defies Trump, says Hormuz must stay blocked

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}In first declaration since his appointment as the country’s new supreme leader, Khamenei demands that US military bases in region must close

In first declaration since his appointment as the country’s new supreme leader, Khamenei demands that US military bases in region must close